Consequences of words spoken in anger
by Lionheart 39
Summary: Accusing someone of Murder sometimes leads to consequences.


That was Murder!

Those words kept repeating in Alistair Lethbridge -Stewart's head, as he drove to collect his daughter. The fact the Doctor had phrased it in that way, in those words hurt! He was a soldier who followed orders, but he had never killed anyone without being sure he was justified in doing so. He had at times found ways around orders that he thought were out and out wrong, orders that he didn't think were well thought out, but the Silurians were not a case in point. Once they had unleashed a virus on the general population the gloves were off. If it had been an attack on troops then may be a truce could have been called, but not when innocent bystanders were deemed targets.

An hour later he was stood at the door of his former home looking in disbelief at the solicitors letter he had found taped there. It informed him that his access to his daughter had been revoked after rumours of him taking part in a military operation that had resulted in the murder of innocent people had been made. Fiona and Kate were not at home and neighbour's said they hadn't been seen since the day before.

Frantic calls to his ex wife and his solicitor had gone unanswered, it was Sunday after all. He spent a frantic day unable to comprehend how this had come about. How could Fiona think he would do anything like that. Did everyone think so little of him.

Kathleen, his secretary had fielded many of the calls that Monday morning, whilst Alistair contacted Fiona, her solicitors and finally his solicitor. She felt her heart sink as she entered his office and saw him looking dejectedly at the photo of his beloved daughter. The call to Geneva had been the last straw, because of the Official Secrets Act, he would be prevented from telling the court the true story of what had happened. Any official enquiry would exonerate him of any wrong doing, but there would always be an element of doubt about his integrity. Kathleen knew that to be the final straw to such a proud and honourable man. She placed a cup of tea and a plate with a couple of his favourite biscuits on his desk and left.

An hour later the Brigadier entered the lab and approached the Doctor. The Doctor turned his back and walked away. "Doctor!" he demanded "Do you still hold by what you called me the other day?" he asked.

The Doctor turned back his eyes still blazing, "A Murderer, Yes, yes I do. It was murder plain and simple, Brigadier orders or no orders."

"And you're testify to that in a court of law?"

"Any court!" the Doctor snapped. The Brigadier's shoulders slumped as he walked out.

He returned to his office sat for the next hour writing a long letter. He sealed it wrote his daughters name on the envelope and a date. He handed this to Kathleen to keep. He asked her as a personal favour to make sure if anything was to happen to him the letter would be given in to Kate's hand, a week after her 21st birthday . He smiled and said I don't want to spoil her Birthday. I need you or someone you trust to do this for me Kathleen, he said, I need Kate to know the truth!

Kathleen was rather upset as she went to lunch.

Liz Shaw often chatted to the woman who, although rather formal and very protective of the C.O. was usually good company, today she seemed on the verge of tears.

"I'm worried," she told Liz, "the Brigadier never flouts the rules, but with this letter he is. Last letters, no matter how the deceased wants them delivered should be deposited along with wills and all last requests in their personal files."

Liz had never even considered that soldiers wrote such letters, did every soldier expect to die? Did they all write letters for loved ones.

"Mind you that bitch, of an ex wife of his, has the perfect weapon to use against him. If he loses all contact with Kate, I don't think he'll care what happens to him. I mean he's never been too careful of his own personal safety, but this could make him suicidal. " With that Kathleen left for the toilets to repair her makeup.

Liz tried to talk to the Doctor about what Kathleen had told her, but as soon as the Brigadier was mentioned the Doctor just stalked off.

They had the Master pinned down in an abandoned slate mine in Wales, he had tried to take over a nearby Nuclear power plant. The Doctor had theorised he needed the energy to try and boost his TARDIS free of the Earth. The Doctor had managed to stop the energy transfer and had stopped the Master from using his TARDIS to escape.

Unfortunately before UNIT had managed to apprehend him the Master had hijacked a truck carrying Nuclear waste and kidnapped the site managers wife and daughter, who had been at the power station to meet him.

The nuclear waste truck had been taken into the mouth of the abandoned mine. The Master was threatening to release the waste into the atmosphere by blowing up the truck if he wasn't allowed to escape with his TARDIS. The Station managers family were there to ensure UNIT could not take any direct action. They had been tied up and left on a rocky out crop just to the right of the road UNIT troops would have to use if they wanted to attack. The sides of the quarry were far too steep for troops to get down to free the hostages without being detected.

Capt. Yates had been in command right up to an hour previously as the Brigadier had been away in London for the day. But once informed of the situation by Capt. Yates, he had joined them. Having been flown in by helicopter to a nearby glider club and driven from there.

"Not in uniform Brigadier" the Doctor chided taking in the Brigadier's blue pinstripe suit and white shirt.

"No Doctor! The family court, although fairly informal does have it's standards. I was in London trying to get access to Kate back. But I guess this will have buggered up any chance of me ever seeing my daughter again!" The Doctor looked shocked at this. Even so he said glancing over at the power station manager who was being cared for by Liz Shaw let see if we can get one little girl back to her Dad.

The Brigadier was using binoculars, studying the cliff face with interest. I suppose you've noted the outcrop of rock above the entrance to the mine? He asked Capt. Yates.

"Yes sir, we have discussed bringing that down, Sir. The Doctor and Miss Shaw do believe it will contain any Nuclear blast, but we can't do it with the two civilians there."

"Or are they expendable in the interest of the many?" The Doctor asked!

Brigadier just shook his head, "Whatever you think of me Doctor, I don't start wars and I don't kill the innocent. I'd die if it would save that man from the pain of losing his family. So Doctor if you don't mind keeping the master talking, which is something you seem to be good at, my men and I will try to sort this out. We need about an hour." The Brigadier walked off to join his men.

The Doctor had been negotiating for half an hour when he observed a small glider slowly cross over the back of the quarry out of the Masters line of sights as he tried to convince the Master of the futility of his plan. The Doctor avoided bringing any attention to the glider, he caught sight of a single man parachute out of the glider and drift down towards a crop of rock 100m from the hostages who were behind the Master.

Unaware of the parachutist the Master continued to rant at the Doctor.

The lone parachutist had got to the hostages and cut their bonds, but as the woman moved a slide of rock alerted the Master who sprinted for the mine entrance. The parachutist fired his pistol at the Master but he was quickly out of sight.

Mike Yates was bellowing commands to the artillery.

The Doctor sprinted back to Mr Yates position.

You can't fire, what about the hostages, Mike passed the Doctor his binoculars, he recognised the Brigadier dressed in dark blue pinstripe trousers, a Blue NATO Jumper and a flack Jacket herding the woman and little girl in to a shallow cleft in the rock.

"That won't give them enough cover" Liz screamed at Mike.

"Best we can do Miss," Mike shouted, "The Brigadier is going to block the entrance the best he can!" Mike said.

"What with?" the Doctor asked!

"His body!" Mike! answered "we are going to try and keep the fireworks well away from them."

"But that slate will burst like shrapnel, it'll be razor sharp!" Liz shouted.

"It's suicidal" the Doctor muttered.

" We'll I have been trying to tell you for the last few days that people are worried about the state of the Brigadier's mind, since they stopped him seeing his daughter, because you accused him of being a Murderer!"

The Doctor looked shocked! How did they hear about that. John Benton pointed to a young man who was being made to carry heavy equipment. Got drunk and was mouthing off in a pub, one of Mrs Lethbridge-Stewart's friends was there. Only reason he's still breathing is because the Brigadier stopped us sorting him out.

The artillery fired and within a minutes the ridge of rock over the mine entrance crashed down sealing the Nuclear waste into the mine.

The UNIT Vehicles raced around the mine road, Geiger counters reading slightly elevated levels but nothing dangerous. John Benton took a squad to find the Master while Mike the Doctor and Liz raced up to the cleft in the rock.

The Brigadier was slumped in the entrance, he seemed concussed, he had a large gash on the side of his head, and cuts to his hands and face but was otherwise unharmed. The Doctor noted the light weight flack Jacket, the Brigadier was wearing, was one he had designed. It had large shards of slate embedded into it.

Liz was trying to stop the Brigadier's head wound from bleeding, as Capt. Yates helped the uninjured woman and child down to a car with the Station manager in it. The Brigadier smiled wistfully seeing their reunion.

Sargent Benton reported no signs of the Master, but even the Doctor said he'd probably got away.

Back at HQ Liz was berating the Brigadier about his plan, that was stupid, you could have been killed. If that shard of slate had hit you in the neck it could have severed an artery, why did you have to be the one to do it she demanded. You're a sodding Brigadier! You order others to do things, you get a Parachute Regiment officer to do it a jump like that. That's what they are trained for.

It wasn't stupid and it was the only option, as for the latter I was a Parachute Regiment officer before I became 2inC. in the Scots Guards, that's why it had to be me, no one else in UNIT has done as many jumps as I have.

The first time I met the Doctor I had been parachuted into London.

The Doctor remembered that and the many other battles they had fought together. Alistair Lethbridge Stewart was, he knew, a honourable soldier. He felt bad about the consequences of his words. Even though he knew he still thought the decision to destroy the Silurians was the wrong one. Alistair had a point about them attacking innocent people first.

Mike Yates came running into the Office, "Sir Unit, we're on the News!"

The whole story was there reported by Harold Chorley. How UNIT had stopped the theft of Nuclear waste. How the terrorists had kidnapped the Power Station manager's wife and daughter. How the heroic Brigadier Alistair Lethbridge- Stewart had parachuted in to rescue the lady and her daughter and had been injured in a blast whilst protecting them by standing between them and the explosion."

Twenty minutes later and Kathleen walked in to the Brigadier's office "I have a message from your solicitor, Brigadier. He says because of today's exceptional circumstances your case will be carried forward to next week.

The Brigadier was not hopeful that the case would go his way. He had wanted no fuss but Liz had insisted that the had his head wound properly bandaged and the cuts to his face and hands were dressed. Kathleen also insisted that he would have to wear his No2 Dress uniform as his suit trousers were ruined. "I look like I should be in an Egyptian exhibition at the British Museum!" the Brigadier complained.

"Nonsense!" Liz said "You look like what you are Brigadier, a Hero."

The Brigadier looked down at his shoes, embarrassed.

The Doctor quirked a smile, Lethbridge-Stewart wasn't a man to boast, or brag

Again Harold Chorley was reporting that the Heroic Brigadier had left a case at the family court to rescue the young girl and her mother held hostage by terrorists. And how today he was out of his sick bed to try and ... Chorley and his team were quickly moved on by the police. Liz thought it was lucky that they were before the Brigadier rammed Chorley's boom Mike down his throat.

"If I catch who it is at UNIT leaking information to the press they will be peeling potatoes for the next two years." The Brigadier muttered to Liz.

In court the people who had heard Private Evans talking about the Brigadier being a Murderer were asked to give evidence. Evan's himself explained what he had overheard. Liz Shaw then gave evidence that the Brigadier had used explosives to sealed a cave containing a type of lizard that was infected with a dangerous virus at Wenley Moor. The Doctor then testified that in his view that act had been genocide for the lizards and tantamount to Murder.

Mr Justice Nicholson, had restored the Brigadier's visitation rights while admonishing the Doctor for his exaggerated views on genocide, where Lizards were concerned.

The Doctor bit his lip, the sight of the Brigadier smiling and waving to his daughter helped him to keep from telling the Judge what to do with his opinions.

Kathleen met Liz for lunch. "Any sign of who leaked the story to the press?" Liz asked trying to keep a straight face.

Kathleen shook her head mournfully." I doubt we will ever know now!" She said quietly with a half smile!

The Doctor was looking with pleasure at the flak Jacket the Brigadier had worn. "Look at this Liz," he said pulling a large jagged piece of slate out of the centre of the rear of the jacket. "Your view that the Brigadier was acting in a totally reckless manner were unfounded."

Liz shuddered, thinking that where that shard had been would have been over where the Brigadier's heart was.

Sargent Benton came in to collect some reports. "Looks like that thing worked well, good job the Brigadier changed his mind about wearing it. It was only at the last minute when he thought it would help keep him warm on the descent!

Liz and the Doctor exchanged shocked looks!


End file.
